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Michelin’s Bib Gourmands are selected by Michelin’s esteemed and anonymous food inspectors and represent restaurants that serve two courses and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less (tax and gratuity not included). Most important, they are the restaurants that the Michelin inspectors frequent themselves.

In the 2014 edition, 138 New York City restaurants, which include a diverse range of 31 cuisine types across the five boroughs, have been designated as Bib Gourmands, compared to 126 last year. While the famous Michelin stars remain the most celebrated international distinction in the MICHELIN Guide, the Bib Gourmand is a highly desired honor among restaurateurs and one that is recognized by the many people who covet quality food at a reasonable price.

Michelin’s anonymous inspectors regularly dine across Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island to make their choices for the Bib Gourmands and the other selections in the MICHELIN Guide New York. These local inspectors are trained to scrupulously apply the same time-tested methods used by Michelin inspectors for many decades throughout the world. This ensures a uniform, international standard of excellence. As a further guarantee of complete objectivity, Michelin inspectors pay all their bills in full.

According to the Michelin Guide (2008), Tokyo, Japan is home to 160,000 restaurants, 191 of which have been given Michelin Stars. Of the 23,000 restaurants in New York City, 54 have been given Michelin stars. Finally Paris has 20,000 restaurants, 98 of which have been given Michelin stars.

So what does this mean?

In Tokyo only 0.12% of the restaurants have Michelin stars. In New York that statistic is almost doubled to 0.23% of restaurants having Michelin stars, and in Paris 0.49% of restaurants have Michelin stars.

Clearly owning a restaurant that receives a Michelin star is a great accomplishment. We have some of these chefs submitting their recipes to us!

In the past 30 years iconic Grammy Award winning photographer Albert Watson has over 200 Vogue and 40 Rolling Stone covers to his credit and in 2010 decided to take his lenses on the “road less travelled”, to document The Macallan signature sherry oak casks on their journey from the scenic forests of northern Spain to The Macallan home in Scotland.

An evening away from Wine Portfolio last Thursday led me to the pleasure of attending The Macallan Masters of Photography Collection premiere at the Milk Studio in New York’s meatpacking district.

Showcasing two revered art processes, photography and whiskey-making, Watson took a 12-day photographic odyssey to document the journey of a young couple taking a voyage of discovery and the breathtaking backdrops they encounter along the way of the more than 600 miles of bucolic scenery.

Olivia Munn, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart’s newest correspondent said she was “thrilled to be here and to be living in New York” while Vincent Piazza who plays “Lucky Luciano” on the hit HBO series “Boardwalk Empire” was also in attendance.

Even though the buzz in the room on Thursday was about the beauty of the iconic images of Mr. Watsons’ photo series, the real star of the night was The Macallan Sherry Oak 20 Years Old. A limited selection of just 200 bottles is available for purchase now in the U.S. for $1,000 each. The bottle arrives in a sleek black presentation box and includes a specially commissioned label by Watson alongside a set of 10 unique portfolio prints.

For collectors another 36 individually customized bottles of The Macallan 1946 whiskey, the year Watson first met his wife, Elizabeth, each with a signed one-of-a-kind collectible platinum print, will also be available for purchase later this year for $16,000.

I for one would love to try The Macallan 1946 whiskey but I think it is out of my price range. I have sampled a 1970 whiskey. What about you, what’s the oldest tipple you’ve ever had the pleasure to enjoy?